Random News: May 28, 2022

DISCLAIMER: Zak's Random News is very random and doesn't cover many things, and not everything may be accurate, because I'm just some guy. Go find a real news source.

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Good morning. It’s May 28, 2022, and it’s a Saturday. Some random weekend stuff…

• It’s Memorial Day weekend. I’m not going to harp on people who want to relax and have fun on this solemn holiday that was put in place as a time to mourn the deaths of US military personnel. If you can, try and spend a minute or two being grateful for their sacrifice.
• Memorial Day weekend is also the unofficial start of summer. I get that too, despite it being silly. Summer here in the northern hemisphere starts on June 21, a full three weeks away, when the Earth’s pole tilts closest toward the sun. But that’s fine; you can pretend it’s summer any time you want. I don’t care.
• Actor Jon Voigt, who has long been a major right-wing conservative and a huge supporter of Trump and the MAGA world, said this after the Uvalde school shooting: “There should be proper qualifications for gun ownership. Proper testing. One should only own a gun if they’re qualified and schooled.” And yes, in this rarest of circumstances, I agree with Jon Voigt.
• That tells me what I already knew, which is that regardless of political affiliation, a big majority of Americans believe in sensible gun laws.
• On the flip side, former President Trump read the names of the 19 massacred kids from Uvalde at the NRA conference yesterday, and then danced and laughed. Don’t believe me? It’s on video and I’ll show you.
• More and more information is still trickling out about the inaction of the Uvalde Police Department during the Robb Elementary massacre. I’m not going to talk about the details here; they would boil the blood of any human with a heart. Instead, a request: if you have a job in law enforcement at any level, if you’re not prepared to put your life on the line to save others, resign immediately and find another line of work. Today. Don’t wait for next week. Do it right now. 
• The only other point in this regard. Right now across America, people are wondering if their own local police force would behave in the same cowardly manner as the cops in Uvalde. This diminishment of trust and respect affects every officer in every department, and it’s not going to be easy to regain. 
• In other horrible news, it’s likely only a matter of weeks until the Supreme Court officially makes its announcement to remove women’s bodily autonomy by reversing the landmark Roe v. Wade decision. This will be a summer of violent protest, and pretty soon, life in America will likely look very different than the country most of you have known your whole lives.
• Sigh.
• From the sports desk, the Miami Heat beat the Boston Celtics to force a game 7 in the Eastern Conference Finals. That game is in Miami tomorrow night. 
• In other sports news, San Francisco Giants manager Gabe Kapler says he will skip the national anthem due to lack of action against gun violence. “I don’t plan on coming out for the anthem going forward until I feel better about the direction of our country.” Glad to have men of conscience like him around.
• Human bag of shit Ted Cruz got confronted in a restaurant after the NRA convention last night. I would warn every person who supports the murder of children and other innocent people to be ready to have other people call them out publicly. On my end, no level of family or friendship will stop me from loudly pointing out these folks. Some of my Facebook friends should take heed.
• This doesn’t happen in other countries.
• Today in history… 1830: President Andrew Jackson signs the Indian Removal Act which forcibly relocates Native Americans. 1936: Alan Turing submits his proof “On Computable Numbers”, and as a result you’re reading these words on a computer 86 years later. 1937: Volkswagen is founded. 
• May 28 is the birthday of composer Germiniano Giacomelli (1692), athlete Jim Thorpe (1888), formerly respected person Rudy Giuliani (1944), musician John Fogerty (1945), bass player Leland Sklar (1947), singer Kylie Minogue (1968), and my friend Joel Tamas (1969).

Well, I wrote this in a robe while drinking my second cup of coffee. You don’t want to read what I’d write before my first cup of coffee. This is me being positive, I swear. I hope you both enjoy yourself and find some small way to make the world a better place to live for those around you.